Branston's Off The British Menu - Premier Foods To Sell Pickle To Japan's Mizkan

Branston Pickle is to be sold to a Japanese firm by owner Premier Foods in a deal worth £92.5 million.

No jobs are believed to be at risk as Japan's Mizkan already has operations at Burntwood in Staffordshire, so the 350 staff which work at Premier’s factory in Suffolk will all transfer as part of the deal.

Mizkan had previously acquired Premier's vinegar brand, Sarson's, and pickles business, Haywards, and is a major supplier of rice vinegar in the UK.

The deal represents another push from Premier to reduce its £1.4bn debt, having already raised £370m from the sale of other non-core brands, such as Robertson’s marmalade and Gale’s honey earlier this year.

It is now ahead of its £330m reduction target for June 2014.

"I'm delighted to have exceeded our disposal target 20 months early while at the same time delivering three successive quarters of sales growth and taking £40m of overhead costs out of the business this year," said Premier Foods chief executive Michael Clarke.

Branston, which is named after the village near Burton in Staffordshire where Crosse & Blackwell first produced it in 1922, sells an estimated 28 million jars a year of the pickled relish.